nsuUiVLaA^imA . YIjuv ZJrJd ^aJli) 




Glass H-" ^ I "^ 
Book Lii_^ 



j^ r-c-e yyi arsons, iV^vi/ Vor/C (^C i' t y } XS 
yu>. 2. So. /' 

PROOEE DINGS 



B1A80NIC FESTIVAL 



L\ COMIIKMOIIATION or THK 






7^// 



A N N I V p] R S A R Y 

/ 

OK 

DOETC LOIX^E, No. 28 

or THE 

ANCIKNT AND HONORAiSl.K I'lUTFllNirY 

OK 

FREE AND ACCEPTED MASONS, 

MELD O.N THK 

Bei)U)Cf of rt'')n!:|r(! .'^*>t\ 1 8,5,5, 

AT THEIR HALL, 68 EAST BROADWAY. 



N E W YORK. 
II O B I;: 11 T M A C O y , P R 1 N T K H . 

1 8 .') f) . 



-:pr 







Nkw Yokk, Ilk Fcb'y., 1855. 

At a regular communication of Doric Lodge, No. 280, held at their 
Hali, the following' rcsoliitionp,oftered by W. P. M. Henry Bremer, were 
unanimously adopted. 

Resolved, That this Lodge will celebrate the approaching anniversary 
of the Birthday of Washington, and the happy termination of our second 
year of existence as a Lodge, by a Alasonic Festival, to be held in this 
hall, on the 22d inst., in which the families and friends of the brethren 
may participate. 

Resolved, That a Committee of three be appointed to carry the above 
into effect. 

In accordance wherewith (he W. JNlaster appointed W. F. M. Henry 
Bremer, W. Br. M. J. Drumhond and Br. F. (t. Taylor, such Com- 
mittee. 



(From the IMhiutes.) 



R. V. BATEMAN, 

Secret aril- 




Xkw York, M;irch 1st, 1855. 
To P. M. -loHN W. Simon'?. 
W. Brother: 

The imdersigutHl l^commitlce. having been instructed by Doric 
Ludgo, 280, to procure a copy of your address delivered before that body 
ou the 22d iilt., beg leave, in the name of the Brethren, to thank you for 
your very able and im})ressive discoui-sc on tlic occasion referred to, and 
to request that you will furnish llu-ni \vitli*a copy for publication. 

I'^ratcriially yours, 

HENRY BREMEU, 
M. J. DRUMAIONI), 

F. (J. ']\\^^[;0R, 

Cot)) mil tee. 



\k\v VnuK. Marrli '.](L 1855. 

Ijkktuke.n : 

[ aoi in receij)t. of your cDnnnuiiication of th(^ 1st. Inst., and 
acknowledge the fraternal courtesy therein expressed. I regret that in 
the brief space allowed me for })reparation. I was unable to offer a pro- 
duction better worthy of the occasion. Being intended, however, for the 
iuforniatioQ of those without the pale of the Order. I trust tjie Brethi-en 
will overlook its imperfections, and that its nii.ssion may not be fruith^ss. 
The irianuscript is inclosed, and at your service. 

FraliTiiaUy yours. 

JOHN W. SIMONS. 
'J'o AV. IJr. il. iJiiKMKi:. 

M. J. Dku.mmo.no, 
'• •' F. Cr. Taylok, 

Cmnmi.UeA'. 



ORDER OF EXERCISES. 



Introduction. 
Wa^iiincton's March." — Band. 

Ode. 

]^h'su- — •' An.i) Lan(; Svm-:." 

Address, 
B\ TiiK A\'(u;siupi-iL Mastkk. 

Ode. 

MUKIC ■' V)i,l) HrMiKKD.'" 

Address, 
V,\ \V. !*. M. John W. Simons. 

Supper. 

3 a n c i u g . 




To THE W. Master, Wardens and Brethren of 

Doric Lodcie, No. 280. 

HP] Committee to whom was intrusted the 
arraugemonts for the celebration of the 
22d February, respectfully 




REPORT : 

.'ompliance with the resolution under which 
•e appointed, they issued circulars of invita- 
tion to the active and honorary members of the Lodge, 
with their families to be present on the occasion, and pre- 
vailed upon W. Cr. J. W. Simons, to deliver the address; 
and for the better accommodation of the guests tliey ob- 
tained the use of the lower hall in this building, in addi- 
tion to our own. 

At the appointed hour a large number of ladies and 
brethren had assembled iu the Lodge room, where suitable 
committees were in attendance to receive and conduct 
them to their places. 

The exercises commenced with " Washington's March," 
and other patriotic airs by the band, after which the 
assembly united in singing the following 



ODE. 

M(;s[() — "Au'd Lciiit; Syne. 

Come, })rothcrs oi' the mystic tie — 

Oiir 80cia] work begun — 
AVo'll vaiso an opening song on liigh 

To IliM. the Hor.Y Onk! 
With hearts united, firm and free. 

Wc I'ound our altar stand ; 
Wlio best can Wfi-k, and best agree. 

Are dearest in mw band. 

Come, kindle, at our holy fire. 
Fraternal thoughts and kind : 

Each worthy act and ])urc dt sin- 
Shall kindred wishes bind. 

With hearts united, firm and free. 
We round our altai' stand : 

Who best can work, and best agree 
Are dearest in our band. 



The W. Master, Bro. M. J. Drummond, then proceeded 
to address the Brethren as follows : 
Ladies and Brethren, 

W'f&M^'^''^^''"^'^\ UR assemblage this eveniuif; is to celebrate 
Uhe anniversary of the birthday of a sage, 
-'a patriot, the Father of his country, the 
"^ immortal Washington. A name which no 
/MlJ^repiiblicaii can hear without that reverence due to 
exalted worth — without a feeling of pride in the 
distinguished position it occupies in the Temple of 
Fame — without gratitude for the libertv and the blessings 




9 



flowing from it, which wc now enjoy, through the virtues 
of that excellent man, and truly illustrious brother, whose 
praises a thousand tongues in unison with us, arc now 
chaunting. 

The brethren of Doric Lodge, deeply sensible of the vir- 
tues of our departed brother, have selected this occasion 
to render a patriotic tribute to his memory, while they 
also celebrate the merits of our institution, whose precepts 
he followed with unwavering fidelity to the close of his 
earthly existence; that while they arc held in grateful 
remembrance by the elder brethren, they may prove a 
bright and shining light to guide the younger ones in the 
path that leads to that '" house not made with hands, eter- 
nal in the Heavens." 

We can all readily excuse the pride a young mother 
feels in her first-born. God has wisely ordained that the 
pure, unselfish love she exhibits to her infant shall be a 
source of unceasing pleasure to herself. On the same 
principle you will perhaps pardon us for intruding upon 
youf attention an allusion to the rise and progress of this 
Lodge, proud to be, as on this occasion, the hosts of so 
many fair ladies. . As a Master should always do, I feel a 
deep solicitude for its welfare, and grateful to those l>reth- 
ren who, by using their inlluence, and intioducing their 
friends, have materially contributed to the interests of the 
Lodge and the honor of the Fraternity. 

Two years since, a number of brethren, ainong v/hom 1 
desire particularly to mention our W. P. Masters. J. W. 



10 



Simons and Henry Bremer ; our Senior Warden, W. H. 
Bush ; our Junior Warden, J. R. Candage ; our late effi- 
cient Secretary, A. Hahn. and our Treasurer, AV. N. Buck- 
ley, deeming it fit that the excellent tenets of our soci- 
ety should be more widely disseminated among those who 
love and practice the social virtues, determined to enter 
the vineyard, and bring more laborers to the work, that 
Masonry might be honored, and they profited thereby. 
In the period just closed, one hundred and thirty neo- 
phytes have been admitted to a participation in our labors, 
and to the ])rivilege of beholding the glorious mysteries 
of the inner Temple. Of this large number but three 
have been removed by death. The brethren have faith- 
fully discharged their duties to each other and to the 
Craft. They have visited the sick and buried the dead, 
extended the protection of the Order to the widow and 
the orphan, and in all the various details of the business 
transacted, no angry word has been spoken among us. 

Our financial prosperity has been of the most gratifying 
character, our receipts amounting in the aggregate to some- 
thing over four thousand dollars; out of which we have fur- 
nished and paid for the hall we now occupy, together with 
the clothing, jewels and paraphernalia necessary to the 
practice of our art, besides the sum of seventeen hundred 
■dollars disbursed in cliarity and incidental expenses. 

Our object, in common with the Fraternity wherevor 
dispersed, has been to extend the benefits and privileges 



11 



of the association, and in pursuit of this object we are 
necessarily drawn from our homes, and the society of 
those who make home what it is. Should you deem the 
occasional absence of your husband, brother, or lover, an 
innovation on your rights, retlcct, we pray you, that the 
harvest cannot be gathered without laborers, that the 
time spent in the discharge of the duties required here, 
contributes to the education and elevation of the finer sen- 
sibilities of man's nature, and renders him a better hus- 
band, son, or brother, than many could hope otherwise to 
be. Recollect that to visit the sick, and to comfort the 
afflicted, is the command of Holy Avrit, and that every now 
laborer added to our numbers lessens the individual bur- 
then, and makes the general work more easy of accom- 
plishment—and finally, be reminded, that with your ap- 
proving smiles we shall best prosper, and so give us your 
benisou and god-speed in the great and glorious work wo 
have undertaken. 

The following ode was then sung : 

ODE. 

McsK-— "OA/ Hundred.'' 

How blest the sacred tie, lliat binds 
]ii sweet coniinmiioii. kindred nuuds! 
How swift tlie lieavenly course they run, 
Whose hearts, whose faith, whose hopes are one. 

Together oft they seek the place 
Where Masons ni(>et witli sniilinn' face 



12 



llow hign, how strong their raptures kwoII. 
Tliorf's none but kindred soids can tell. 

Nor t^hall the glowing Haiue expire, 
When dimly burns frail nature's fire; 
Then shall they meet in realms above — 
A heaven of joy — a heaven of love. 

The Worshipful Master then introduced W. P. M. Jno. 
W. StMONs, who, amid the most profound attention, pro- 
nounced the iollowinu- 



A I) T) R K S S . 

WoKSHiPFUL Master and Brethren, 
Ladies and Gentlcnioi : 

IlE purpose of our present meeting is two- 
fold. We desire to pay a Masonic tribute 
to the memory of that eminently good man 
whose name adorns the pages of our his- 
tory, and to rejoice together on this second anniver- 
sary of our existence as a Lodge. 

In pursuit of this {dan I appear before you, in an 
attempt to give expression to the sentiments of my breth- 
ren, and to elncidatc some of the leading principles of our 
Brotherhood. I am aware that tlie field I am to tread 
has been shorn of its richest harvest. Yet I may, perhaps, 
like Ruth of old, bo enabled to gather a measure of barley 
— to glean a few thoughts worthy of rellcction, as well 




]3 



irom the arcaua of our institution as from the life and 
example of our illustrious Brother. 

It were an idle task to attempt the eulogy of Washing- 
ton. His fame is Avritten in imperishable characters, on 
the hearts of every iicojile who look ujjon rational liberty 
as the birth-right of humanity. His tjrilliaiit deeds, his 
generous sacrifices, are storied in the aspiriiig greatness of 
this Republic, the work of his genius, the fruit of his toils. 
His name will ever command the respect of tyrants, and 
awaken the drooping ambition of the oppressed, and when, 
in the future progress of time, the people of every nation 
shall have asserted their natural birth-right, and wrested 
from the brows of their oppressors the diadems of power, 
when the monstrous sacrilege of divine right shall have 
been scattered to the winds, and those who rule by vir- 
tue of their nobility have been taught that true sover- 
eignty is alone vested in the people, then shall the name of 
the American Cincinnatus be more Avidely revered, as 
commemorative of a stand-point in the world's regener- 
ation, as the impersonation of the fundamental doctrine 
of Republicanism, that all men are created free and 
equal. 

As citizens of this hap]>y land, we feel a thrill of patri- 
otic pride on the return of this auspicious day, the anni- 
versary of that whicli, one hundred and twenty-three years 
ago. gave birth to Washington. As Masons, we feel an 
additional [)ridc. that the peculiar system of our Order 



14 



was submitted to his inspection and met with his commen- 
dation, and we thus publicly testify our patriotic and 
Masonic pride in his memory. 

The character of Washington, though criticised by the 
ablest minds of tlie world, has ever been extolled as that 
of a just man, from which even slander has never been 
able to detract one iota. Honorable, upright, and consci- 
entious, his entire life dedicated to the service of his fellow 
man, his best energies devoted to the elaboration and exe- 
cution of designs for their beneiit, he furnishes a striking 
example of the aim of all Masonic teaching, a luminous 
point of comparison in our progress in the duties of our 
profession. 

When scarcely arrived at legal age, he was admitted to 
a participation in our labors, and during his long public 
career, he maintained that connection, with pleasure to 
himself, and with great honor to the fraternity. 

That he was a Mason in more than appearance, is evi- 
dent from his long attachment to the order, and his ready 
and cheerful compliance with its useful rules and regula- 
tions. In the early days of the revolution, when by vir- 
tue of authority delegated to him by Congress, he was in 
possession of the powers of a dictator, he sat as a private 
member in a Lodge presided over by a non-commissioned 
oflQcer of his army, and paid Masonic reverence to one 
who, when stationed at his post of duty, was his military 
inferior. 



16 



Not satisfied with the fulfillment of required duties, he 
at all times was ready to publicly acknowledge his associ- 
ation with, and his obedience to, tiie principles of the 
Institution. On his retirement from active life, covered 
with the honors of his country and the Craft, he thus 
wrote : " In that retirement which declining years induced 
me to seek ; and which a mind long employed in [)ublic 
concerns, rendered necessary ; my wishes, that bounteous 
Providence will continue to bless and preserve our coun- 
try in peace, and in the prosperity it has enjoyed, will be 
warm and sincere ; and my attachment to the Society of 
which wc are members, will dispose me always to contri- 
bute my best endeavors to promote the honor and interest 
of the Craft."' 

Again, '" Being persuaded that a just appreciation of the 
principles on which the Masonic Fraternity is founded, 
must be promotive of private virtue and public prosperity, 
I shall alwoys be happy to advance the interests of the 
Society, and to be considered by them as a deserving 
brother." 

On another occasion, " I recognize, with pleasure, my 
relation to the Brethren of our Society ; and I accept, 
with gratitude, your congratulation on my arrival in 
South Carolina. 

" Your sentiments on the establishment and exercise of 
our equal government, are worthy of an association, 
whose principles lead to purity of morals, and are benefi- 
cial of action. 



16 



"I shall be happy on every occasion to evince my re- 
gard lor the Fraternity." 

And again, " Flattering as it may be to the human mind, 
and truly honorable as it is to receive from our fellow 
citizens, testimonies of approbation for exertions to ])ro- 
mote the public -welfare, it is not less pleasing to know 
that the mildci- virtues of the heai't are highly respected 
by a Society whose liberal principles must be founded in 
the immutable laws of Truth and Justice. To enlarge the 
sphere of social happiness is worthy of the benevolent 
design of the Masonic Institution. And it is most fervently 
to be wished, that the conduct of every member of the fra- 
ternity, as well as those publications that discover tlic 
principles which actuate them, may tend to convince man- 
kind, that the grand object of Masonry is to promote the. 
happiness of the human race." 

Such were the opinions of our Institution expressed by 
Washington; opinions exemplified by his walk and conver- 
sation ; opinions you will permit me to say. of which the 
system is worthy, and which avc, Brethren, and all the 
votaries who surround the sacred altars, should have in 
mind, as monitors to recall us, should we, by any influence, 
be tempted to do violence to our teachings by the slightest 
deviation from the paths of rectitude. 

That the system or order of Free-masonry is, and ever 
has been, worthy of the admiration and protection of good 
men, I propose now. briefly to show you. 



Free-masonrj has been Iccliuically described as "a 
beautiful system of morality, veiled in allegory and illus- 
trated by symbols/' and to the initiate this is perhaps the 
most comprehensive definition that could be given. For 
the benefit of those, however, who stand without the gates, 
let us attempt a more extended picture. 

It is an elevated system of morality, of pure morality, 
as distinguished from the rites and requirements of re- 
vealed religion. 

Masonry calls forth the exercise of memory^ judgment 
and reason. Religion demands our hope, our earned faith, 
our unlhuited confidence. 

Masonry is a way-mark, indicating by its various cere- 
monial allusions the paths of rectitude, virtue and humanity, 
with a simple and direct allusion to our worldly and tem- 
poral interests and happinesr^. 

Religion calls into action the most exalted virtues of 
the soul, and opens to us the sacred communion between 
man and his Maker : it comforts us in the hour of afflic- 
tion, it extends to us the supporting arm of divine conso- 
lation — it is the voice, the law of (lod. Wo teach those 
lessons that appeal to the better sympathy of man, not 
only in words, but by an organized symbolism, appealing, 
through the eyes, to the understanding. This system of 
emblems, derived from a remote antiquity, pervades the 
ritual and every article connected with the Lodge. Noth- 
ing is liere without its lesson of truth. Notliing that 
2 



18 



does not serve to remind the observing Brother of some 
duty, and constantly keep before him the claims of the 
Order to his attention — of society to an upright obedience 
to its laws. It is sometimes objected that tlie age when 
men were taught l)y hieroglyphics, has passed away, and 
that the Press and the lecture-room have taken their 
place, in a more enlightened system. To this we answer 
that Masonry, having ever been the friend and patron of 
the liberal arts and sciences, must of necessity be the last 
to refuse her admiration to the progress of society, or the 
adoption of any measure calculated to elevate the social 
condition of man. To the " Art preservative of arts,'' 
she is largely indebted for her wide-spread influence, for 
where civilization and the arts of peace are most cultiva- 
ted, there Masonry has found her most devoted worship- 
pers. We adliere to our symbols, however, because they 
are imperishable, because they do not cliange their form 
or significance ; the lessons they taught to our fathers 
they teach to us, and will enable us to hand them to com- 
ing generations as we received them. They are unwrit- 
ten books of practical virtue. Silent, but mutely eloquent, 
enstamping themselves upon the memory with a force that 
neither time nor circumstances can overcome. Thus the 
commou gavel or stone hammer, teaches us the virtues of 
silence— of obedience to the lawful commands of our supe- 
riors—of the necessity of divesting our hearts of the 
vices and superfluities of life. The twenty-four inch guage 



19 



instructs us properly to divide our time, so that we may 
render that homac'e to the Deity, which is our iirst duty ; 
pay due attention to our usual vocations, and reserve a 
proper space for refreshment and sleep. The rough stone 
reminds us of our rude and imperfect state by nature, the 
smooth or perfect one, that state of perfection at which 
we may reasonably hope to arrive by a virtuous education 
and sincere endeavor. The all-seeing' eye, that though 
our thoughts, words and deeds, be hidden from the eye of 
man, yet the eye of Omniscience, governing the starry 
heavens, and laying the boundary of comets in their stu- 
pendous revolutions, pervades the inmost recesses of the 
human heart, and will sooner or later mete out justice to 
the guilty, and so of others. It is true, that these CApl;.- 
nations are written and spoken, but while the words 
fade from the car and are forgotten, the silent symbol is 
ever present to our attention, ever leading us from the 
material to the spiritual — from the created up to the 
Creator. 

It is an eminently social institution. Viewing mankind 
as one great family, created by the same Almighty Parent, 
and inhabitants of the same planet, it teaches us that we 
are mutually to aid and protect each other, and thus it 
unites men of every sect and opinion, and conciliates true 
friendship among those who might otherwise have re- 
mained at a perpetual distance. 

Laying aside, for a time, those artilicial distinctions of 



20 



rank and wealth, which, however, are necessary in the 
world to the regular progression of society; its members 
meet in their Lodges on one common footing of brother- 
hood and equality ; the distinctions of wealth and social 
position are forgotten, while virtue and talent alone claim 
and receive pre-eminence. Friendship and fraternal 
affection are strenuously inculcated and assiduously culti- 
vated, and that mystic tie is established which peculiarly 
distinguishes the Society. Whatever may be the relig- 
ious or national prejudices of a Mason, however much he 
may be separated in the world from some of his Brethren 
by his peculiar opinions, he leaves those incumbrances at 
the door of the Lodge, and enters that sacred retreat with 
a heart open to every impression of kindness and frater- 
nity. This bond. too. is not local in its character, but 
extends to every region where Masonry has obtained a 
foothold or civilization extends. And thus within the 
very bosom of many great political confederacies, varying 
with every phase of organization, from the stern despot- 
isms of the East to the free Republics of the West, we 
tind other and smaller confederacies forming a universal 
o-overnment, w^iose basis is the equality of its members: 
whose policy is always peaceful, and whose laws arc main- 
tained, not by the coercive penalties of a legislative code, 
but by the mild sanction of morality and love. Admit- 
ting all to partake of its benefits whose character and 
conduct have given tfem a title to the boon, it extends 



21 



its influence and exercises its sway for only the wisest and 
best of purposes. Its members renounce no allegiance to 
their lawful government — lay aside no claims to the exer- 
cise of their political opinions or. actions— the worship- 
pers at her altars abandon no tenet of their religious 
faith, but men of all creeds and parties unite together in 
carrying out the objects of the institution. 

Though, as has just been remarked, we profess no par- 
ticular creed, yet we could hardly establish our claim to 
a system of morality did we refuse to acknowledge and 
reverently defer to the precepts of religion. In every 
Lodge the Bible is an oitcn book, and all are enjoined to 
an acquaintance with its precepts, that none may say 
" through ignorance he hath erred." The influence of its 
instructions and its practices, is to foster an enlightened 
spirit of liberty, by teaching the general level of mankind 
their common duties and their common destinies. It has 
always flourished best where the intelligence and educa- 
tion of the people have been most cared for, where civil 
and religious liberty have been most sedulously protected; 
and on the other hand, it has l)een most oppressed where 
the blighting influence of des{)Otisin spread darkness over 
the moral culture of the people, and built up governments 
on the must deplorable ignorance of the governed. Hence, 
all powers, depending on the ignorance or superstition of 
the people, must be the natural enemies of Freemasonry. 
Not so much because it is secret, for they know that its 



00 



doors are opened to every worthy applicant, but because 
they tremble at the influence of a society that places the 
peasant on a natural equality with the prince, and takes 
the Word of God as the great light to direct its delibera- 
tions and its actions. 

Thus, the social advantages of our Institution are well 
calculated to produce mutual esteem of each other, un- 
bribed by interest, and independent of it — a generous con- 
fidence as far distant from suspicion as reserved ; an 
invisible harmony of sentiments and dispositions, of de- 
signs and interests; a fidelity unshaken by the changes of 
fortune: a condition unalterable by distance of time or 
place; a resignation of personal interest, and a reciprocal 
exchange of kind offices. This inward experience of true 
friendship, which is to be found in every human breast, 
proclaims that the genuine and universal relation between 
man and man is that of Brotherhood. 

The principal tenets of our profession are Brotherly 
Love, Relief and Truth ; the guides for our action, the 
Holy Bible, the Square and Compass, assisted by Forti- 
tude, Prudence, Temperance and Justice. Our inculca- 
tions are drawn from the great source of Light and Truth, 
and bid us have faith in God; hope in immortality, and 
charity to all mankind ; to relieve the distressed, to com- 
fort the afflicted, and to minister to the wants of the des- 
titute ; to be faithful citizens to our country and true to 
our fellow men ; to welcome the friendless stranger, and 



23 



make him feci that he has found a home in a strange land; 
to take the orphan by the hand, and protect the widow in 
the hour of her desoLation, and prove a friend to whom they 
may look for assistance and protection. Such, my friends, 
are the principles upon which our Order is founded ; such 
the lessons by which its votaries are guided in their 
endeavors to unite men in one aim of fraternity — in one 
general endeavor to smooth the path that leads to the por- 
tals of a better world. Such are the principles that 
engaged the love and veneration of WASHiX(iTON, and 
induced him to leave, on imperishable record, the sentiments 
I have read in your hearing. Such are the principles by 
which the Brethren of Doric Lodge have been guided, and 
which I trust will ever be kept foremost in all their future 
existence. Do you wonder, then, that the Society of Free- 
masons attracts so much attention in the present day ? It 
could not well be otherwise, for if our fathers, and the 
generations before them, have been its devoted adherents, 
how shall we, enjoying the blessings of this enlightened 
country, fail to see in it the indication of that general 
union of the great family of man when strife and animos- 
ity shall cease ; when nations shall no longer war with 
nations; when the Lion and the Lamb shall lie down to- 
gether; when all shall be peace, and when the general 
system shall have become so purified, that the Great Crea- 
tor, looking upon his finished work, shall pronounce it 
good, and the ransomed hosts of the earth shall enter upon 
their eternal inheritance. 



24 



Ladies, a word with you : do not suppose that the 
consideration of these principles, or the discharge of the 
duties incumbent on us, for a moment effect the allegiance 
we owe to your authority, or interfere with the homage 
so eminently due you, and which we are at all times so 
ready to pay. The lessons which man only learns by 
study or experience, are yours by gift of the Creator. He, 
in His infinite wisdom, created you as an help-mate for the 
sterner sex : He endowed you with hearts open to every 
gentle feeling, and made the dispensation of active benev- 
olence a portion of your very nature. Man at best is but 
a rough stone from the quarry, filled with imperfections, 
and only moulded to the practice of gentle deeds by edu- 
cation and the example of you who depend on him to 
move the stumbling-blocks from the way of life. As. 
daughters, sisters, wives, mothers, your mission is given 
you from the Grand Master of Heaven, and with the Free- 
masonry of love, you shed the influence of your presence 
at the domestic altar ; you are the presiding deities of 
Home, that sacred retreat, where man enters, secure from 
the searing influences of the world, to breathe the calm 
joys of your ministration. Yours it is to rejoice with us 
in gladness; to grieve with us in sorrow; to be ever in our 
heart of hearts, the choicest jewel in the crown of life. 
And what God has done let no man undo. 

And finally, Brethren, as we are entering on another 
year of Masonic existence, let us resolve to cultivate witli 



25 

greater assiduity tlic duties of our calling. If in tlie past 
we have done aught that has given pain to another, let us 
repent of it, and wisely endeavor to amend our future 
conduct : if our sins have been those of omission, let us 
endeavor, with greater industry, to hll u}) the blank. 
Taking for our model, the illustrious Brother whose anni- 
versary we celebrate, let us not weary in well doing, so 
that when old age comes upon us, we may transmit the 
work unimpaired to our successors, and look l)ack with 
infinite satisfaction on the happy hours of a well-spent 
life. 



The Brethren and iVieuds were then escorted to the 
banquet room, where a splendid and substnntial feast had 
been spread, under the superintendence of Hr. "NVm. H. 
Bush and lady, to whom your Committee beg to return 
their acknowledgements for their assiduity and attention 
to the wishes and the comfort of tlie guests. 

After due attention to the wants of the inner man tlie 
tables were removed, and the hall cdeared for the dance ; 
and now the rosy hours sped lightly on, as old and young 
joined in the pleasure of the time, and vied with each 
other in adding zest to the general enjoyment. 

All things must end, and so, when ruthless time, mark- 
ing as of yore "low twelve" on tlio dial, announced the 
8 



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beginning of a new day, the mu»ic ceased, and all sought 
their homes in peace, there and hereafter to cherish the 
remembrance of onr happy festival. 

Fraternally submitted, 

HENRY BREMER, 
M. J. DRUMMOND, 
F. G. TAYLOR, 

Committee. 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




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